Progressive Advances in the Past 100 Years
This table is adapted from American Nations: A History of the Eleven Rival Regional Cultures of North America by Colin Woodard. Any additional interpretation is mine and mine alone.
American Nations demonstrates how the United States is deeply divided along cultural boundaries, with Yankee Culture (New England, New York, The Midlands, and the Pacific Northwest) generally favoring progressive programs and the Dixie Culture (Deep South, Appalachia, and the Far west) adamantly opposed to all of these programs. Other pages on this site will go into more detail about how this cultural divide manifests in the US today and the results of this perpetual conflict between cultural alliances. A map illustrating the regional cultures can be found here.
|
Issue |
Right Wing/Dixie Culture | Left Wing/Yankee Culture |
|---|---|---|
| Abortion Rights/Reproductive Rights | Opposed | Favor |
| Accurate History | Opposed | Favor |
| Anti-War | Opposed | Favor |
| Atheism | Opposed | Allow |
| Banning religion in schools | Opposed | Favor |
| Biblical Criticism | Opposed | Favor |
| Bill of Rights | Opposed | Favor |
| Checks on Corporate Power | Opposed | Favor |
| Child Abuse Prevention | Opposed | Favor |
| Child Labor Laws | Opposed | Favor |
| Choice | Opposed | Favor |
| Civil Rights | Opposed | Favor |
| Critical Thinking | Opposed | Favor |
| Democracy for All | Opposed | Favor |
| Education (state-run, universal) | Opposed | Favor |
| Energy Regulation | Opposed | Favor |
| Environmental Protection | Opposed | Favor |
| Equal Opportunity for All | Opposed | Favor |
| Evolution | Opposed | Favor |
| Fair Tax Structure | Opposed | Favor |
| Feminism | Opposed | Favor |
| Financial Regulation | Opposed | Favor |
| Freedom from Oppression | Opposed | Favor |
| Freethinking | Opposed | Favor |
| Gay Marriage | Opposed | Favor |
| Gay Rights | Opposed | Favor |
| Green Movement | Opposed | Favor |
| Intellectualism | Opposed | Favor |
| Interracial Dating and Marriage | Opposed | Favor |
| Justice for All | Opposed | Favor |
| Labor Protection/Unions | Opposed | Favor |
| Liberal Theology | Opposed | Favor |
| Melting Pot | Opposed | Favor |
| Milk for Children | Opposed | Favor |
| Minimum Wage | Opposed | Favor |
| Modern Art | Opposed | Favor |
| Modernism | Opposed | Favor |
| Multiculturalism | Opposed | Favor |
| Playgrounds and Parks | Opposed | Favor |
| Racial Equality | Opposed | Favor |
| Science | Opposed | Favor |
| Secular Humanism | Opposed | Favor |
| Secularism | Opposed | Favor |
| Separation of Church and State | Opposed | Favor |
| Sexual Freedom | Opposed | Favor |
| Social Justice | Opposed | Favor |
| Social Safety Net | Opposed | Favor |
| Temperance and Prohibition | Opposed | Favored |
| Universal Health Care | Opposed | Favor |
| Urban Planning | Opposed | Favor |
| Voting Rights | Opposed | Favor |
| War on Poverty | Opposed | Favor |
| Women's Rights | Opposed | Favor |
| Women's Suffrage | Opposed | Favor |
| Workplace Safety | Opposed | Favor |
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